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Student fixes wheelchair lift on school bus
After a wheelchair lift malfunctioned on a school bus in Marion County, an elementary school student came to the rescue. A wheelchair-bound second grader who rides this bus to school every day ran into a problem when the lift failed to work. It took one of his classmates to read the to manually operate the lift so his friend wouldn't be left behind.
MARION COUNTY, Fla. - The parents of an East Marion Elementary School student in a wheelchair worried their son wasn't going to make it to school last week.
The lift on his school bus wasn't working.
But while adults struggled to get it working, a classmate found a solution to get the boy to class safely.
Seven-year-old Isaiah Johnson switched schools halfway through the year, and his parents have been relieved to see how accessible his new school has been for him.
"The team that operates the bus in phenomenal," said Timmy Martin, Isaiah's father. "They get him to school on time every day. They get him back every day."
But a few days ago, the lift on his school bus wouldn't work.
"We were scared," said Nicole Martin, Isaiah's mother. "We were worried that he wasn’t going to get to school. I had to go to work, so I couldn’t drive him there."
Living with muscular dystrophy, Isaiah's parents feel strongly about him getting to school like all the other students.
"The switches were all on, but the lift would not work," said Patricia Sipe, Isaiah's bus driver.
While the adults tried to figure out how to fix it, another student found a solution by reading the instructions printed at the bottom of the machine.
"He said, ‘No Ms. C, it’s right here,'" said Cassandra Clifford, the bus aide.
10-year-old Cole Davis was able to figure out how to lift Isaiah into the bus, using the lift manually.
He might not have known the gift he also gave to both Isaiah's parents and his own mother, who found out about it days later.
"It brought tears to my eyes, gave me a wonderful Mother’s Day gift," said Kimberli Dotts, Cole's mother.
Cole Davis received a citizenship award from the school this week.
He still helps his friend Isaiah getting on the bus every day.